Picture: Shawn Spencer-Smith
Susan Mary Crompton began her married life with her new husband Joseph on board the ss Great Britain on her voyage from Melbourne to Liverpool in 1866.
Mary loved watching the sea, and made friends with a variety of people whilst travelling on board.
As well as writing in her diary she organised entertainment for fellow first-class passengers.
Her descriptions of the characters, habits and eccentricities of both fellow passengers and officers on board the ss Great Britain form a large part of her diary:
24th June 1866
“We are beginning to see the rats, one came into my cabin the other night as I was going to bed, I jumped onto the berth and waited till Joe came down, then he and one of the stewards had a grand rat hunt but the gentleman escaped through a hole. Mrs Fenwick was wakened by one biting her toe nails and Jane Cumming has had a new stocking eaten by another.”
1st July 1866
“Another little baby this morning. Mrs Austin’s poor baby died about 10 o’clock, she has been very ill all this week and early this morning she was seized with convulsions which continued until she died: she was a nice little thing of five months old, with long curly brown hair. I never saw a child with so much at her age. A women belonging to the second cabin had twins.”
12th July 1866
“Last night a poor man was lost, he was seen about 12 o’clock but no one knows anything of him since it is supposed that he jumped overboard: he has been very quiet and melancholy ever since we sailed: he was a German in the steerage.”
Find out about Edward Towle and Allan Gilmour.
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